Couture Animal Care

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 Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because: The recollection of **. [redacted]'s account of the incident is not quite accurate. The text message received from **. [redacted] stated: "Hi [redacted]! [redacted] from Couture! [redacted] said Schatzi did great after he knew who she was :) Have a great evening!". Nowhere in that message was there an indication of my cat being scared or the pet sitter spilling water. If this was the case, there should not have been insulin soaked papertowels in my trash can. Water does not smell of insulin, so the papertowels were not used to clean up water.
Also, the phone conversation with **. [redacted] was not as she stated. She failed to mention that she apologized profusely for the damage to the vial, said she would check with her insurance and pay out of pocket if necessary. She then offered me $100 to which I stated that the insulin costs $210, not $100. She told me again that she would check her insurance and get back to me and in the meantime I should send her the photos of the damaged vial that was half full. I had a witness that saw the vial before the pet sitter arrived and after the pet sitter damaged the vial. The witness also heard the entire phone conversation since I was on speaker phone.
I filed in small claims court to seek reimbursement for damaged property caused by neglicence of her employee, but somehow **. [redacted] was able to avoid being served by [redacted] County and also returned the certified letter mailed to her address twice. The court case remains open. The text conversation is attached.
Regards,[redacted]

Dear [redacted] at the Revdex.com,On April 28, 2014 [redacted] of [redacted] in [redacted], VA contacted me through my online submission form from my website. She had inquired whether or not I had experience giving insulin to cats of which I replied that I have...

a vet technician that does have experience, [redacted] said that she was not concerned about having a vet technician, rather someone that could give the insulin shot as her friends are not readily available, She then asked for the rates which in which replied that do have a vet technician that is able to give shots and also explained the rates. She inquired about how the pet visit would happen in which explained that she would need to fill out several forms. I sent three legal binding contracts to her titled 1.Pet Profile Terms and Conditions 2. Vet Authorization Form 3. Entrance to Your Residence Form and told her to have these completed along with two copies of the key.  I told her that there would be a complimentary Meet & Greet Special that I normally charge new clients at a rate $10.00 per visit. I waived this fee for her, We then agreed that myself, my vet technician and [redacted] would meet on Friday May 2, 2014 at 7:30AM so that she could show my vet technician how to give the insulin shot. Upon arrival she had stated that she was so grateful that we were able to give her cat the insulin shot because she called around and no other pet sitting company would do it, and that her friends were out of town. Giving her the benefit of the doubt, and wanting help her out, we then stayed there as she showed us how to do it. She was planning to go out of town and needed someone to give her cat the shot on Saturday May 3, 2014 at 7-8 pm. My vet technician went to the clients house and performed the service. I had told her to tell me how the client's cat named "Schatzi" did and she said the shot was given and that the cat seemed scared and she spilled some water on the floor and cleaned it up with napkins and put it in the trash. I then texted [redacted] and let her know that. On Sunday Morning [redacted] called my cell phone to tell me that she had found the bottle of insulin upside down and that the bottle was shattered. I then responded that I will look into the matter and apologized to her but did not have all the facts.  I gave her the benefit of the doubt and told her to forward me pictures of the broken vial.  She sent me pictures of a shattered vial and that is when  I contacted the vet technician/animal caretaker. I asked the vet technician what exactly happened and she had said that when she arrived and was trying to retrieve Schatzi that he was scared, and she knocked over his water dish on the floor. She said she grabbed some paper towels and soaked the water up and put it in the trash can. I had asked her about the broken via and whether of not it was upside down or not. She had replied that when she arrived, she got the vial but felt liquid on the outside and was not sure if it was the condensation from the refrigerator or the actual medication itself. So after the administration of the shot, and out of goodwill, she turned the bottle upside down back into the carton to preserve it so it wouldn't leak anymore like she found it. l then went on to ask her if the bottle was shattered when she arrived and she replied that it wasn't.[redacted] sent me pictures on Sunday at 7:25AM and then replied in an email that she estimates that half of the insulin had been wasted and that my vet technician is responsible for dropping and shattering it and that the associated cost is $210.00. The pictures of the vial was empty. Had it been dropped, then she would have still had half of the bottle left. She then sent me another email on the same day at 8:23AM saying that she spoke to a pharmacist who told her to not use the vial due to possible shards of glass being in there and being harmful if it was injected. She later went on to explain that she could not afford a new vial and was scrambling around to find a free sample, She then forwarded me a receipt of the new vial bought from [redacted] on Sunday May 4, 2014. After receiving the photos and the receipt, I had told her that we had talked to the pet sitter and that the pet sitter had stated that when she arrived, she had noticed a small leak from the bottle. I advised the client that this was a latent defect and for her to send it back to the manufacturer and that we were not responsible for an already damaged bottle. She then sent me emails stating that she would seek legal advice, that this is negligent behavior, and the like. Out of goodwill, instead of dismissing her accusations decided to do what is ethical and waived all of her fees. I waived the $10 Meet & Greet Fee, waived the $3 medication fee, waived the 15 minute pet visit fee of $12, and also paid for her keys to be sent US Postal Mail with tracking in the amount of $5.60. The client did not pay anything Couture Animal Care and cost us a loss of revenue of $30.60 plus gas mileage to and from the client's residence. She has slandered my company on [redacted].com of which [redacted].com has taken down her review for slander. She has called my cellphone demanding payment for the vial and threatened that she would tell everyone she knows abut my company thus trying to slander and cause defamation to my company. Out of goodwill, Couture Animal Care LLC took into consideration the clients concerns and waived all fees resulting in a loss of revenue $30.60 plus future legal fees and the transmission of this document - expected fax costs, at [redacted] is $10,00. Couture Animal Care LLC has contacted a  Washington D.C. law group that, specializes in slander and will take legal action against [redacted] should this persist.
Attached are copies of the following:
Client Agreement & Pet Profile
Authorization admission to my apartment
Authorization to obtain medical care for my pets
Couture Animal Care LLC Terms of Agreement for Pet Care Services
Receipt from the US Postal Service
Standard Business QuestionnaireThank you.

Review: I hired the pet sitting company Couture Animal Care (owner [redacted]) for a one time express visit to provide an insulin injection for my diabetic cat (injections are required twice daily). On Friday May 2, 2014 at 7:30 am the owner [redacted] and her "vet technician" [redacted] stopped by for a "meet and greet" and to receive instructions and a demonstration on how to inject the insulin. The vial of insulin was completely intact at that time (also that evening, the following morning and the afternoon before I left my home). The "vet technician" came to my home on Saturday May 3, 2014 at approximately 7:30 pm to provide the insulin injection. I received a text message from the owner at 7:46 pm that same evening to inform me that everything went well. Sunday May 4, 2014 when I opened the insulin carton in the refrigerator, the vial was inserted upside down which puzzled me at once. I pulled out the vial to see the bottom of the vial had been shattered. I found insulin soaked paper towels in the garbage can. When I contacted [redacted] to inform her that the vial had been damaged by her pet sitter, she said she would check with her insurance and if necessary, pay out of pocket to replace the damaged vial. The insulin was no longer usable (pharmacist and vet informed me that shards of glass in the half filled vial could be injected and be fatal). [redacted] had asked me to send all information to her to include the photos I took of the damaged vial. I also sent her the $210 bill for the new vial. She responded with the following: "Very sorry that this has happened. Unfortunately we cannot do anything on our end. I have talked to the dog walker who has said that she didn't see a crack in the bottle but that she did notice a small leak but thought it was condensation from the refridgerator on the bottle." Then went on to claim it must have been a latent defect and that I should contact the manufacturer. I believe the owner is responsible for employee's negligence and should reimburse me as she originally indicated.Desired Settlement: I am seeking reimbursement to the medication I had to replace immediately due to the pet sitters negligence and damage to the $210 vial of insulin.

Business

Response:

Dear [redacted] at the Revdex.com,On April 28, 2014 [redacted] of [redacted] in [redacted], VA contacted me through my online submission form from my website. She had inquired whether or not I had experience giving insulin to cats of which I replied that I have a vet technician that does have experience, [redacted] said that she was not concerned about having a vet technician, rather someone that could give the insulin shot as her friends are not readily available, She then asked for the rates which in which replied that do have a vet technician that is able to give shots and also explained the rates. She inquired about how the pet visit would happen in which explained that she would need to fill out several forms. I sent three legal binding contracts to her titled 1.Pet Profile Terms and Conditions 2. Vet Authorization Form 3. Entrance to Your Residence Form and told her to have these completed along with two copies of the key. I told her that there would be a complimentary Meet & Greet Special that I normally charge new clients at a rate $10.00 per visit. I waived this fee for her, We then agreed that myself, my vet technician and [redacted] would meet on Friday May 2, 2014 at 7:30AM so that she could show my vet technician how to give the insulin shot. Upon arrival she had stated that she was so grateful that we were able to give her cat the insulin shot because she called around and no other pet sitting company would do it, and that her friends were out of town. Giving her the benefit of the doubt, and wanting help her out, we then stayed there as she showed us how to do it. She was planning to go out of town and needed someone to give her cat the shot on Saturday May 3, 2014 at 7-8 pm. My vet technician went to the clients house and performed the service. I had told her to tell me how the client's cat named "Schatzi" did and she said the shot was given and that the cat seemed scared and she spilled some water on the floor and cleaned it up with napkins and put it in the trash. I then texted [redacted] and let her know that. On Sunday Morning [redacted] called my cell phone to tell me that she had found the bottle of insulin upside down and that the bottle was shattered. I then responded that I will look into the matter and apologized to her but did not have all the facts. I gave her the benefit of the doubt and told her to forward me pictures of the broken vial. She sent me pictures of a shattered vial and that is when I contacted the vet technician/animal caretaker. I asked the vet technician what exactly happened and she had said that when she arrived and was trying to retrieve Schatzi that he was scared, and she knocked over his water dish on the floor. She said she grabbed some paper towels and soaked the water up and put it in the trash can. I had asked her about the broken via and whether of not it was upside down or not. She had replied that when she arrived, she got the vial but felt liquid on the outside and was not sure if it was the condensation from the refrigerator or the actual medication itself. So after the administration of the shot, and out of goodwill, she turned the bottle upside down back into the carton to preserve it so it wouldn't leak anymore like she found it. l then went on to ask her if the bottle was shattered when she arrived and she replied that it wasn't.[redacted] sent me pictures on Sunday at 7:25AM and then replied in an email that she estimates that half of the insulin had been wasted and that my vet technician is responsible for dropping and shattering it and that the associated cost is $210.00. The pictures of the vial was empty. Had it been dropped, then she would have still had half of the bottle left. She then sent me another email on the same day at 8:23AM saying that she spoke to a pharmacist who told her to not use the vial due to possible shards of glass being in there and being harmful if it was injected. She later went on to explain that she could not afford a new vial and was scrambling around to find a free sample, She then forwarded me a receipt of the new vial bought from [redacted] on Sunday May 4, 2014. After receiving the photos and the receipt, I had told her that we had talked to the pet sitter and that the pet sitter had stated that when she arrived, she had noticed a small leak from the bottle. I advised the client that this was a latent defect and for her to send it back to the manufacturer and that we were not responsible for an already damaged bottle. She then sent me emails stating that she would seek legal advice, that this is negligent behavior, and the like. Out of goodwill, instead of dismissing her accusations decided to do what is ethical and waived all of her fees. I waived the $10 Meet & Greet Fee, waived the $3 medication fee, waived the 15 minute pet visit fee of $12, and also paid for her keys to be sent US Postal Mail with tracking in the amount of $5.60. The client did not pay anything Couture Animal Care and cost us a loss of revenue of $30.60 plus gas mileage to and from the client's residence. She has slandered my company on [redacted].com of which [redacted].com has taken down her review for slander. She has called my cellphone demanding payment for the vial and threatened that she would tell everyone she knows abut my company thus trying to slander and cause defamation to my company. Out of goodwill, Couture Animal Care LLC took into consideration the clients concerns and waived all fees resulting in a loss of revenue $30.60 plus future legal fees and the transmission of this document - expected fax costs, at [redacted] is $10,00. Couture Animal Care LLC has contacted a Washington D.C. law group that, specializes in slander and will take legal action against [redacted] should this persist.Attached are copies of the following:Client Agreement & Pet Profile Authorization admission to my apartment Authorization to obtain medical care for my pets Couture Animal Care LLC Terms of Agreement for Pet Care Services Receipt from the US Postal Service Standard Business QuestionnaireThank you.

Consumer

Response:

[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed Administratively Resolved]

Review: [redacted]

I am rejecting this response because: The recollection of **. [redacted]'s account of the incident is not quite accurate. The text message received from **. [redacted] stated: "Hi [redacted] from Couture! [redacted] said Schatzi did great after he knew who she was :) Have a great evening!". Nowhere in that message was there an indication of my cat being scared or the pet sitter spilling water. If this was the case, there should not have been insulin soaked papertowels in my trash can. Water does not smell of insulin, so the papertowels were not used to clean up water. Also, the phone conversation with **. [redacted] was not as she stated. She failed to mention that she apologized profusely for the damage to the vial, said she would check with her insurance and pay out of pocket if necessary. She then offered me $100 to which I stated that the insulin costs $210, not $100. She told me again that she would check her insurance and get back to me and in the meantime I should send her the photos of the damaged vial that was half full. I had a witness that saw the vial before the pet sitter arrived and after the pet sitter damaged the vial. The witness also heard the entire phone conversation since I was on speaker phone. I filed in small claims court to seek reimbursement for damaged property caused by neglicence of her employee, but somehow **. [redacted] was able to avoid being served by [redacted] County and also returned the certified letter mailed to her address twice. The court case remains open. The text conversation is attached.Regards,[redacted]